Locking electrical connections are well known in the art, for example from United States Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0057477 A1; U.S. Pat. No. 8,439,697 B2; U.S. Pat. No. 7,172,451 B1; U.S. Pat. No. 7,108,538 B2; U.S. Pat. No. 5,921,798; U.S. Pat. No. 5,393,239; U.S. Pat. No. 4,909,749; U.S. Pat. No. 4,627,681; U.S. Pat. No. 3,891,289; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,710,304. It is commonplace for a first electrical cord having a male plug on one end and a female socket on the other end to be extended in length by electrically connecting the male plug of a second electrical cord to the female socket of the first electrical cord. Oftentimes, the electrical connection between the first electrical cord and the second electrical cord is located in an office, garage, or other work area. As such, the electrical connection is prone to being inadvertently disconnected. Tension accidently applied to one or the other of the electrical cords, for example by someone or something becoming entangled with the electrical cord or a tool is pulled from one end, can cause the male plug to be removed from the female socket. A sudden loss of electrical power from the electrical connection can result in injury to a worker or damage to a work piece. The unintended loss of electrical power can also cause an inconvenient interruption in the work flow, and consequently, frustration to the worker.
It is therefore desirable to provide an electrical connection between a female electrical socket and a male electrical plug that cannot be inadvertently disconnected during use. It is further desirable to provide an electrical connection between a female electrical socket and a male electrical plug that can be locked against inadvertent disconnection once the male plug is inserted into the female socket. It is still further desirable to provide a female electrical socket that can lock an electrical connection between the female socket and a male electrical plug after the prongs on the plug are inserted into the socket and prevents accidental removal of the plug from the socket until a lock mechanism provided within the socket is disengaged.
In view of the aforementioned needs, the present invention was conceived and one of its objectives is to provide an improved locking electrical receptacle, socket or the like for receiving an electrical plug in an electrical connection.
It is another objective of the present invention to provide an electrical connection between a female electrical socket and a male electrical plug that can be locked against inadvertent disconnection when the male plug is inserted into the female socket.
It is a further objective of the present invention to provide a female electrical socket for receiving a male electrical plug such that an electrical connection between the socket and the plug can be locked once the plug is inserted into the socket and the plug cannot be inadvertently disconnected from the socket, for example by tension applied to an electrical cord electrically connected to the plug or the socket.
It is still another objective of the present invention to provide an electrical receptacle, socket or the like with a lock mechanism having a button, slide or the like for manipulation of the lock mechanism between locked and unlocked positions.
Various other objectives and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art as a more detailed description of exemplary embodiments of the invention is set forth below.